The scale of the firms’ debts was revealed in an update from administrators filed at Companies House.

Gateshead based Zentia Limited and Zentia Profiles had a combined turnover of more than £50m when Interpath were appointed as administrators in June and most of the 163 staff lost their jobs.

The firms were market leading manufacturers of complete acoustic ceiling solutions, including mineral ceiling tiles, suspension grids, and floating ceiling systems.

Interpath is in negotiations to sell some of the company assets but unsecured creditors are unlikely to receive anything in return for the unpaid invoices they were left holding.